Stellaris Chronicles Act 1: The British Interplanetaries
by DarthTrekkie2016
Summary: Lance Corporal Cameron Hughes is ecstatic to be sent into the stars. Will the first ever British Interplanetary Army provide him the fantastic imagery and stories he has envisioned? Or will he discover just how terrible interstellar war can be? Rated M just in case the war gets too bloody.
1. Chapter 1

Act 1: The British Interplanetaries

Chapter 1: Embarked

17-5-2289, 23:37

Lance Corporal Cameron Hughes sat, feet propped on the desk, having just deleted his third attempt at a farewell letter. Try as he might, he couldn't exactly find the right words to say. His girlfriend had made it clear when he joined the army that she wouldn't stay. He hadn't minded. But what would he say to his parents? He had meant to type up something sorrowful and mourning, but each time had devolved into ramblings about what he might see or who he might meet. Even though he knew full well he'd likely just be transferred from colonial base to colonial base, he couldn't help but fantasize. His only feelings were of excitement. He decided after some debate to send his latest draft, ramblings and all. With his literal Earthly affairs in order, he finally allowed himself some sleep.

18-5-2289, 8:22

"Cameron! Cam, over here mate!" Jordyn called out, leaping to be seen over the crowd. Cameron, in somewhat of a miracle, made it through the crowd to a group of his comrades. Jordyn immediately grabbed hold of him, and dragged him toward the lift. As soon as the doors slid shut, it plunged downward.

"Jesus man… Look at that beauty." Jordyn glued himself to the glass wall, marveling at the massive ship before them. The London stardock was easily the biggest in Britannia, but had largely specialized in smaller freighters. Now, sat in the massive structure was the ship Cameron had longed to see all his life; an army transport, waiting to depart from Earth and travel the stars. Jutting out from the side of the stardock was a large platform, with a massive stage at one end. No doubt there was a similar setup on the other side. Hundreds were preparing to embark already, lined up in neat rows before the stage. Cameron also noticed that there was a drone buzzing about, likely recording for the news. A large screen sat behind the stage, at that moment showing a distant shot of the transport.

As they neared the bottom, Cameron's eyes were locked on the ship. Sleek, silver, and with faint blue lights. It was easily twice the size of the occasional construction ship that came in for repairs. Possibly as large as the colony ship launched from London, though that had been ages ago. Despite himself, even knowing that his superiors were watching, he couldn't help but be overcome by his fantasies.

They arrived at the platform, and as the doors opened, the sound of cheers and applause echoed from the top. Cameron looked up, barely able to spot a hand or two waving down over the guardrail. He wondered just how many people were up there. His attention was quickly grabbed by a Corporal, who directed him into one of the lines before the stage. Despite the tangible energy of the whole event, the soldiers were all but silent.

This silence was broken, as the Lieutenant Colonel and some other officers climbed the steps to the stage. They were welcomed by a slight cheer, before they called for quiet. The cheers of the crowd above, however, could not be stopped, and it seemed there was no intention to try.

The Colonel nodded to another officer, the Captain who had been in charge of this army's training. He beamed as he stepped up to a pedestal. "Gentlemen of the Fifth British Army. I believe you are aware of your new designation. We are to receive the honor of carrying Britannia's name to the stars!"

A roar of applause erupted from the ranks. Cameron joined his voice to it, fist raised in excitement, some next to him nearly leaping in joy. "Settle down now boys. We're professionals after all, aren't we?" He cleared his throat. "Well, on a more serious note. It has been my honor and privilege to serve as long as I have. But… I regret that I will not be there with you. We still need someone here who knows how to train recruits, after all."

Even with the salutes and promises to remember him, (Some promising to send an alien pet of sorts home for the base.) Cameron's eyes were caught by a glint of sun reflecting off metal. He quickly scanned for where it came from, and saw that the VIP lift was now descending. The Lieutenant Colonel was now at the pedestal, and Cameron feigned attention, but followed the lift as it came down. He noticed that it actually slowed quite comfortably before reaching the platform and… Were those leather seats?

He forgot his envy quickly, as the doors opened and a small group of soldiers filed out. Judging from the uniform...

"Hey, Jordy… Those guys up there…" He nodded to the group. "Are they?"

Jordyn's eyes were alight. "Yeah. That's the bloody Waffen SS… What are they…"

He failed to ask his question, as the troops opened up, and two people walked forward at a gentle pace. One wore a field cap and long coat, and was talking hurriedly to the other. As to the other, well, everyone knew who he was. As he walked toward the pedestal, the ranks fell silent. He wore no badges, save the Iron Cross. He was actually rather humbly dressed. Like his companion, the most color he had to his uniform was the red band around his arm. He eyed the soldiers, and as he did so, the feeling of anticipation among them grew. He gave a small salute to the Colonel, which was returned quickly, and they switched places.

He paused, seemingly collecting his thoughts. "Soldaten. Meine treuen Leute." He began slowly. "... I am geehrt… Honored… To be here. As for the first time, eine Armee of Großbritannien will be sent abroad. Out there, be it in the Kolonien, the frontier Welten, or in our starbases, remember this: Out there… You are the faces of das erste Sonnenreich. The First Solar Empire!" His speech, though accented, eased. He seamlessly blended German with English. As he continued, he became more expressive, more emotive. "You are our envoys, our diplomats, und our voice! Some fear such a task. Some are not capable. Nicht die fünfte britische Armee! Not you, brave Soldaten! Hingehen! Let this herrlich Reich be known by die Sterne!" He stopped, once more overlooking the army. "Für das Vaterland. Für diese Welt! Für das erste Sonnenreich!"

The applause from the upper levels had stopped when his speech, likely broadcasted, had begun. Now, as he closed off on his address, they began anew, even louder than before. The ranks, seemingly in perfect union, saluted. Cameron had never been so overtaken by patriotism. He hadn't cared in the slightest as to his government just the day before. Now, his heart swelled with pride.

"Sieg Heil! Sieg Heil! Sieg Heil!" The cries repeated, not just from the ranks, but from the people above. The Captain and Colonel were clapping as well, and Cameron could swear that someone in front of him actually wiped tears from their eyes. He turned to Jordyn to go off about this pride, but he stopped himself. Jordyn, though joined in the cries, was rigid. As the Führer and his guard reboarded the elevator, and the salutes were replaced with cheers and celebration, he only half-heartedly joined in. It was a bit too late to question him on it now, as they quickly began with the boarding process.

10:45

They had been given the welcoming speech once aboard by a slender fellow in the Kriegsmarine. Afterward, they had been they were free to do as they would. The ship had a firing range, a massive room in which an "outdoor" yard had been built for exercise, a pool. It seemed like a luxury vessel. With a large collection of weapons and armor aboard, as well as men and women trained to kill a xenos or traitor in 25 different ways. Not exactly a civilian's idea of luxurious, perhaps, but fun nonetheless. Not to mention the trip was just shy of a month, giving plenty of time to see it all.

With their introductions over, it was nearly time to embark. A message over the ship's intercom said that they would be leaving the dock briefly. As everyone else began to settle themselves in, Cameron made his way to the window. He had been wondering, after all, how many people had come to see the ship off. Sure enough, it slowly began to rise. It was a rather gentle ascension, he noted. He leaned in a bit, just to be sure he could see all he could. As they came over the lip of the dock, he saw the throng of people spread out before them. The dock had been built a ways away from the city, with a large field surrounding it. The green he had expected to see was covered for what seemed like kilometers by the crowds. He couldn't help but wonder to himself if his parents had popped over from Dresden to see him off. Was the Captain still there? Had Faith come to see him leave? He laughed to himself at his last thought. If she had, she'd have probably flipped him off.

He was joined at the window by Jordyn. Cameron turned to see him, and noticed that he seemed a bit better. Jordyn leaned against the wall and nodded slightly, turning to get a look at the crowds himself. "I always felt like I hated all this. But you know… I think I will miss it." Cameron didn't ask anything about what he meant. The two just watched as their home grew farther and farther away. Soon, it wouldn't be more than a small speck in the sky to them.

…

Hey guys! Darth Trekkie here! So, this is the first bit of the first bit of a story I'm co-writing with a friend of mine, Jonsosweg. In idea, the two of us will co-orchestrate the story of our Stellaris universe! In practice, the two of us will d*ck around in Google Docs talking about Space Nazis and alien wars. For the most part, Act 1 will be written by myself, with my favorite faction from the game. Yes, I made the Space Nazis. And yes. You're welcome. Act 2 is (semi) planned out, and will be written by Jon, as well as uploaded under his account. Also, since Stellaris doesn't come with pre-packaged lore, a lot of this is just straight up our sh*ts and giggles fun. Which is why there are Communist Penguins. Yes, those are mine as well. Don't you judge me.


	2. Chapter 2: Our History

Chapter 2: Our History

20-5-2289, 11:22

Jordyn and Cameron sat in one of the many lounge areas aboard the ship. The _Falke_ was a massive ship, easily accommodating the army. They were now largely alone in a moment of relative quiet, as most of the rest were off to lunch. Despite the rather noticeable lack of an actual day or night, the crew and passengers were kept bound to the Earth time.

Cameron made a quick check around the area before asking his next question. The only thing present was the service robot, polishing away at the black floors. When he turned back, he saw Jordyn's eyebrow was raised.

"So, Jordyn… I had meant to ask earlier." Before he could even finish, Jordyn sighed. He leaned back into his chair.

"It's about what I said back on Earth, right?"

Cameron nodded. "Not just that though. Even during the address, you were pretty visibly on edge. Do you have a problem with Sir Helmut?" He found the very idea incredible. Everyone was supportive of the Führer, and it wasn't as though he hadn't done important and grand things.

Jordyn rubbed his temples. "Actually… No. Not with him. It's a tad more complicated than that."

…

September, 1939. The forces of Nazi Germany invade Poland. Shortly following this attack, the Soviet Union commences their own invasion. The nations of France and Great Britain, having promised to defend Poland, hastily declare war. The world was shocked however by a pact of nonaggression between the two leaders, Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin. The Wehrmacht turned its attention from the east to the west, and the blitz tore through the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. Their assaults on Britain would see great success as well, with Hitler leaving the assault on Britain to his generals as he managed his own projects.

As Western Europe was brought to heel by the Germans and Italians, the eastern nations came under siege from now Axis members Bulgaria, Romania, and Hungary. The United States of America began shipping weapons, supplies, and even some soldiers to Great Britain, though they were limited due to fear of action from the Confederacy. To the far east, the Japanese saw great success against the Chinese, British, and even Americans. Their successful attack on Pearl Harbor destroyed several aircraft carriers and battleships. With their naval capacity in the Pacific crippled, the Americans were largely unable to respond to the Japanese conquests.

In early 1946, while the Axis was busy cleaning up resistance in Africa, Asia, and Europe, the Soviet Union launched their attack on America. The CSA cooperated with them at first, but were pushed to fight them by their suppliers and aides in the Third Reich. Stalin saw great challenge in securing America, but did make progress. Toward the middle of the year, however, the Axis powers set up meetings to discuss a lasting alliance. When the plane from Germany landed in Moscow, however, the city was consumed in an atomic fireball. The Reich had, after much experimentation and debate, completed the atomic bomb. With nuclear power now at the hands of the Führer, the world would submit not long after, with the majority of fighting being against the Russians.

However, as the Axis powers met in Berlin on the thirteenth of October, 1951, a group within Hitler's Nazi party, upset with their leader's self-destructive tendencies, and disagreeing with his plans to purge most of the world's population, set up a coup. Hirohito, Hitler, Mussolini, and several other leaders of the new world government were slaughtered, made to look like a terrorist attack from resistance forces. The new leaders quickly turned the Axis world into a "German" world, though made little action to carry through on purging foreign and different peoples. De-Hitlerization was a lengthy but worthwhile process.

German become the world-wide common language, though many countries continued to use their local tongues. The Wehrmacht was maintained and improved, so as to prevent any uprising or dissent. The new World Empire, or Weltreich, would continue to develop advanced weaponry and vehicles. By 2041, the Reich had begun to extensively look into expansion beyond the Earth.

Over the next century and a half, the Weltreich would establish small bases and colonies around the Solar system. When the first official colony was finished on Mars, the Weltreich was officially dubbed the erste Sonnenreich, the First Solar Empire. The first alien encounter was on January the second, 2193. The ship made a dramatic crash landing on the moon. Over the next seven years, the Reich would reverse engineer several aspects of the ship. The first thing they worked out was the warp drive. In the year 2200, the first ever interstellar capable ships were launched from Earth, setting out about the stars.

Humanity now had access to distant stars, and the Reich was quick to capitalize on this. Alpha Centauri and Sirius both had suitable worlds, and were colonized in 2223 and 2248 respectively. Any aliens the Reich encountered were, though perhaps not the most welcoming, willing to co-exist. And so, the Solar Empire expanded, near unopposed. Their first true rival was met in early June, 2256. The Star Empire of Ios dominated the outer systems of the arm, sharing a border with the Reich. The two were unwilling to do battle, but eyed each other's territory, eagerly awaiting an opportunity.

In 2285, a neutral cartographer from the Gralico Hunter's League released information on several life-bearing planets. They had been tracking a pod of space-whales, and had ended up in the slim space between the Reich and Empire's borders. In a rare show of peaceful intent, the Empire and Reich managed to negotiate and agree upon who got which worlds, as they both found planets they would want. However, one was left alone. The Neosis system was left alone, as the world of Neosis III was inhabited by an early civilization. The world would also give one of the two an edge in resources and land from the deal. It goes without saying that both eyed Neosis III hungrily. Neither had openly made a move.

…

The two sat, both staring out into space. A few minutes had passed since Jordyn concluded his rant about the Reich. It seemed that, despite all they had done, their predecessors had done damage above and beyond what had happened prior or since in human history. Cameron sat, silent, unsure of how to respond to this discovery. He was, perhaps understandably, quite surprised to hear Jordyn chuckle softly.

"Can you hear me? Giving crap to our whole world just because of something done centuries ago. Honestly, I act like the British hadn't done things wrong." He shook his head. "Well, I won't lie. As much as I hate _how_ they united the world, I won't pretend it didn't do us all some good." He rose out of his seat and motioned for Cameron to follow. "Now let's go get some food. Maybe pop by the range."

Cameron was rather slow to follow. He once more considered this history. How did Jordyn know about the original Nazis' plans? How did he know so much about the war? Most of what had been taught in the schools was post or prewar, but very little was ever mentioned about the war in itself. He put these thoughts aside, but would be sure to press him further later. He rose, and jogged quickly to catch up to Jordyn.


	3. Chapter 3: Sirius

Chapter 3: Sirius

2-6-2289

Earth Time: 7:25

Local Time: 16:25

The _Falke_ made excellent time, and touched down a ways outside one of the colonial cities of Sirius III. The system's proximity to the Reich-Ios border had transformed the colony from a humble agricultural center to being a military stronghold unlike any other in the sector. The Sirius starbase hung in orbit, constantly working to maintain the 3rd Flotte. Though Sirius provided for the stationing of the Reich's armies, it was the nearby Barnard's Star that stationed the Kriegsmarine's Ios fleets.

The newly dubbed 1st British Interplanetaries disembarked. Cameron looked out, awed. The base's dock was built on a natural cliff over the ocean. Platforms at the very bottom of a long fall allowed the transports to land. Massive waves struck the rocks, and he marveled at how the ship stayed standing. As he took this in, a group of three distinctly alien birds flew just over him. The water shone brightly in the blue light of the setting sun.

The group was brought before their new CO, Hauptmann Tsutsumi Kunio, a Sirius colonial from a Japanese family. He was shorter than most men, but was rather well-decorated it seemed. Though he himself was armed, and according to rumor always was so, he had very little guards for himself. Evidently, even with Sirius III's reputation, there's never enough men to do everything. His pistol, presumably red laser, was outdone (at least in visual effect) by the sword on his hip. It was rather uncommon to even have melee weapons, aside from a bayonet. He welcomed them and briefly described the base's training regime. As the Unteroffizier began going more into detail on the layout and day-to-day affairs of the base, Kunio made his exit.

…

In less than a week, Cameron and Jordyn found themselves switched out of the reserve, and into some form of duty. Jordyn was assigned service on one of the maglev trains which entangled the world, and Cameron was assigned service at a different base that needed some guards. His time was largely spent walking the perimeter of the walls, or standing near the entrance. Even in over a week of guarding the place, he had never seen inside. However, during some hours there were the sounds of labor and hard work, power tools and cracking stone. He found himself musing that he was defending some mine for an exceptionally rare metal.

One day the senior lance corporal came out, and ordered several men, Cameron included, onto platforms raised above the unloading bay. Not a minute after they set up, a train came into the station, slowing dramatically as it reached the end. The order was given to charge weapons, but keep them down for now. Several soldiers came out of the lead and rear cars, and readied their own rifles on the doors to the central cars.

As the doors slid open, a voice came over the station's speakers. "Achtung Gefangene. Bewegen Sie sich zu den Türen. Versuchen Sie nicht zu entkommen." A soft _ding_ followed. "Attention prisoners. Move to the doors. Do not try to escape." Another tone, this time being said in some confusing series of hisses and clicks. Presumably some alien tongue, though it seemed absurd that anything could make those sounds.

Out from the cars came a procession of aliens, all of the same race. Scales in colors ranging from a dark green to a bright orange. Long tails draped behind them, and their hands were massive and clawed. Many seemed to be wearing scraps of armor, some with blast marks. Cameron saw many younger ones among them, but all were truly imposing. One glanced up, and though his razor-like teeth were showing, Cameron noticed that his frantic glances were more of fear than anger. As the last ones were ushered through the doors, Cameron saw his friend down among the soldiers from the train.

"Jordyn? What's with this?" He shouted down.

The soldiers all started to put away their weapons, and Jordyn made his way over to the platform stairs.

"Cam? Christ mate. I… Well, to start, you know that foundry nearby? The one south of the city?" Cameron nodded. "Well, the natives attacked the place. They even managed to blow up a tank. We managed to beat 'em back, and we took a few prisoner."

Cameron glanced back as the doors to the compound shut, and he gazed up to the height of the wall. "What the hell… What is this place?"

Jordyn sighed and furrowed his brow. "A prison camp, basically. They get shipped off to places like this all over the planet. Just the ones that fight… So most of them."

The two of them watched as the soldiers began filing back to their patrols or stations. None of them seemed to have given it a second thought. It seemed like this was just another part of the job. Cameron desperately hoped he wouldn't be stationed inside a compound like this.

…

Later that same week, nothing much had changed. They had been switched around a little, and were now acting as guards for the civilian transport hub. Apparently, the situation on Sirius III was highly unstable. The native race was highly aggressive, and despite the massive pooling of resources, finding and removing them was difficult. It had cost a large amount of men and vehicles. As things continued on like this, the colonials became more and more angered at either the fact the natives hadn't been eradicated, or the fact that they were being treated so horribly. The Governor had apparently offered his planet to the army for them to station there and try and solve these problems. This did not work.

The two were making their rounds, talking idly about home, when they heard shouting from a nearby landing pad. A small civilian transport ship was being shouted at by a squad of four soldiers, all with their weapons raised. The Unteroffizier motioned for them. "Soldaten! Komm her!"

The two readied their own weapons and hustled down to the craft. They took up formation with the other soldiers, and the officer began shouting once more at the ship.

"Listen here! I am ordering you to open the hold. Comply, or we will arrest you. Öffne die Türen!" The pilot, barely visible through his tinted windows, threw up his hands in frustration, but began pressing buttons. The bay doors began slowly sliding open.

The squad took up position, Jordyn and Cameron at the officer's side. Cameron had his weapon and eyes trained on the pilot, as the cockpit was opened. The man rose slowly, hands raised above his head.

"Nicht schießen! Do not shoot! Ich werde zuhören." Cameron lowered his rifle slightly, turning to look at the officer. He and Jordyn had gone up to help investigate the hold. As light began to enter the hold, several men gasped, and Jordyn shoved the officer back. Cameron made to see what was happening, when the sound of concerned passersby and his comrades' surprise was drowned out briefly by a loud crack, and searing pain in his shoulder. He fell back, shocked, and turned to see the pilot with a pistol in hand.

"Für Freiheit!" The pilot shouted. There was a deafening bang, a brilliant flash of light that seemed to rival a star, and a surging wave of heat that forced Cameron back even further. His head struck the floor, and the world went dark…


	4. Chapter 4: Flashpoint

Chapter 4: Flashpoint

4-6-2289

Skies Over Neosis III

The _Wespe_ began to descend through the clouds of the outer atmosphere. As they began to reach the end of their natural cover, Hauptmann Weingart ordered the cloaking device activated. This flight would double not only as a scouting of the Gaia world, but as the test for the device. The ship was also capable of technical cloaking, which protected them from scanners and radar. Weingart was confident his crew had drilled well enough to guarantee a smooth operation.

"Herr Weingart, we're about to leave the clouds. Systems are nominal." Despite this, the young Ensign looked nervous. It was his first flight over or through enemy territory.

"Sehr gut Fähnrich. Let us hope, nonetheless, they aren't overly observant." Soon enough, the clouds were gone and only the vast green continent stretched out before them. The landscapes of Neosis III were largely temperate forests, with clean rivers and calm oceans abundant. From their high-up vantage point, several primitive villages could be seen. Sprawling farms filled the river valley, and far off mountains seemed to cradle this perfect land, sheltering it from danger.

"Mein Gott… Es ist wunderschön…" The _Wespe_ fell a small distance more, and then sat at a hover. The crew of the bridge sat in awe of the world below. Even the rather beauteous Sirius III had recently become entangled in mag-levs and cities. This world's green went on forever, uninterrupted and expansive.

"Fähnrich, begin our scan." The Ensign gave a salute, and returned to his station. Soon, the ship was gliding just over the villages, plotting every creek and stone for the Reich's maps.

…

Pudrax Carm and a few of his friends sat, overlooking the gorgeous view. Their convoy had been halted to remove a fallen tree, not a big deal. But any chance to look out over the valleys of this world was taken. It must've been a strange sight, three large, horned warriors gazing wistfully out over a field. Certainly made even more strange by the several tanks and APCs on the trail behind them.

Kenar, as per usual, was off cloud watching. Kenar had grown up on a desert colony world, so everything from the puffy white clouds to the rain was a wonder to him. He had a nice view of both, as far in the distance a light rain was pouring over a river valley. His rifle lay to his side, and he was casually sprawled out on the grass. As they were preparing to re-embark, what with the tree being moved, he suddenly sat up. "Pudrax, look at the rain. Out over the fields." He pointed toward the river.

"I know Kenar. Thing is, rain isn't very uncommon. Now mount up grunt." Even as he said this, he stared toward the rain intently. Rather strangely, there seemed to be a whole in the cloud coverage. The golden light of the star poured through it. But that only highlighted the real puzzler. Visible in the light was a spot where the rain seemed to be curving. It was pouring down, and then would arch and fall in torrents downward. It was a rather large spot. And it almost had a definite shape. And now it seemed to be… Turning…

As he saw this, Pudrax turned on his communications. "Chumar… Would you mind doing a thermal scan on that rain?"

…

"Herr Weingart, our initial scans of the valley are complete. There are several valuable minerals just beneath the surface. We have also located rather curious accumulations of alien metals. Or rather, metals that would be alien to this world."

Weingart looked over to his diplomatic advisor. "Is it possible that any foreign entity has arrived here?"

His advisor looked thoughtfully at the projections of the scan. "Well Herr Hauptmann, if anyone was here it would be the Star Empire. And if this is the case, they have violated the treaty. Which, I might add, would justify us taking the planet. This may be a useful find."

Before Weingart could reply, a distant crack sounded. Before he could even ask if it was lightning, a bolt of plasma struck the _Wespe_ , shaking it violently. The damage detection activated, and alarms began sounding. The Ensign quickly dashed to his station, overlooking the ship readout. "Hauptmann, the shields and cloak are failing! Plasma strike from the port side."

He slammed his fist down on the arm of his chair. "Well put it on screen verdammt!" The view flickered from the forward view a distant road. On it were several Skiross vehicles, one with a massive gun pointed their way. "Feuer-" Before he could finish the order, a second bolt struck the ship. It tore through the weakened shields and stuck the bridge, burning into the ship. The pain was severe, but quick.

8-6-2289

Sirius III

Herzstadt City Hospital

With a slight groan, Cameron's eyes opened. He could hear a bustle outside, and several voices. But the room he was in was quiet enough. He sat himself up, with some discomfort, and looked around at his surroundings. It wasn't much of anything really. Medical machinery and computers, some uncomfortable chairs. Everything was a bright white, with only a faded blue stripe halfway up the wall bringing any real color. He sat for a while in this room, not quite sure what one was supposed to do in a situation like this.

After a few minutes, the door opened and Jordyn walked in, seeming to be similarly worse for wear. But unlike himself, Jordyn was at least walking around. "Cam, you're awake! You alright, nothing hurting?"

He tilted his head, a move that did cause some minor pain. "What do you mean? How'd I get here?"

Jordyn took a seat. "Damned rebels. Some fools who think we should ship out because of the natives. Fancy themselves freedom fighters I suppose. Blew up the whole landing pad. Few other places got attacked too, from what I've heard."

The door opened again, and one of the doctors stepped inside. "Ah, Mr. Hughes. Good to see you awake. How are you feeling?"

Cameron sank into his pillow. "Like I've been out for a week."

The doctor laughed a bit, though it was somewhat laced with genuine concern. "No, not at all. It's only been a day. You were lucky to survive the explosion, but treatment here is just as high quality as any Homeworld hospital. Would you mind trying to stand for me?"

After a few hours of making sure everything was working, the two were good to go, if not good as new, and off. Desperately hungry, the two stopped in a nearby sandwich shop for lunch. The two sat outside, enjoying the warm light of the blue star. Jordyn finished first, and sat looking out over the plaze. Several Heer vehicles were stationed around, and the army themselves were out in full force. Apparently, they looked suspicious enough to warrant curiosity.

"Ihre zwei, Identifikation!" A rifleman and his comrade strode over to where they sat. Jordyn spoke back in, though perhaps slow, understandable German. "Ich bin Oberschütze Barrett, und das ist Gefreiter Hughes. Wir sind mit den ersten Briten-"

The soldier nodded. "Ja ja, I get it. Why are you out of uniform Soldaten?"

The two exchanged a glance, and Cameron shook his head. Had their injury just gone unnoticed? "We were caught in the attack at one of the platforms. We stopped to eat before going back to Hauptmann Kunio."

"Well, we cannot- Wait… Herr Kunio?" The two nodded. They soon found themselves being driven away rapidly in a transport speeder, accompanied by several other men from different outfits. It was relayed to them, through accented English and hasty German, that the First British Interplanetaries, along with several other companies, were being shipped off to the Neosis system. It was unclear what exactly had happened, but apparently the Star Empire had shot down one of the Reich's ships. The Führer was understandably pissed, and had ordered immediate military action.

The following hours were pure chaos. Tanks, artillery, infantry, transports, and several tons of supplies were being hauled aboard transports. Unteroffiziere barked orders to their groups, who tried desperately to establish some sort of order to this embarking force. Hauptmann Kunio stood atop an APC, overlooking the mess. Despite the general atmosphere being a buzzing sensation of excitement and anticipation, Kunio looked grim.

Unlike many of the soldiers before him, Kunio had family who had come back from the First Contact War. The stories of the brutality, the ferocity of the Star Empire. His father had lived through the battle of Alpha Centauri, where he had desperately held out with the Second Japanese Space Marines. Though he never said it aloud, he couldn't help but fear. "How many of these men won't return?"


	5. Chapter 5: Landing

Chapter 5: Landing

15-6-2289

The Fringes of the Neosis System

The _Fruchtlos_ returned to regular speed just past the outpost near Neosis VI. The Reich had hastily brought forth a military structure to guard their entrance. They were bound immediately for Neosis III, where the fighting had already become fierce. Maneuvering through the ships engaged in combat was already difficult. And each day more from both side came to bolster the ranks.

The soldiers aboard came from several different units. The 2nd and 5th American Space Marines, the 6th Italian Interplanetaries, and the 1st British Interplanetaries all had been loaded up into dropships. Hauptman Tsutsumi stood by the left door, running through the basics of their assignment.

"Okay everyone. Once the ship touched down we make for the cliffs. We found a doorway into their bunkers, which house several ground-to-space guns. They keep hitting our ships whenever they come close for a bombardment. If we want to make taking this world easier, we'll need to take those out. We'll meet with our other squads once we land, just stay close."

The dropship rocked and a whir of machinery was heard. "Brace for detachment!" Cameron barely managed to slam closed the brace when the ship fell. The sensation was downright sickening. After a moment of freefall, the engines came to life. There was no way to see to the outside, but he knew several hundred of these ships were now on the attack. Hopefully backed up by fighters.

Soon enough the lights turned green, and the ship felt as though it's flight had changed. Tsutsumi lifted the brace and stood. "Alright, we've breached the atmosphere. Get up, we need to move as soon as we touch down."

The sounds of battle were distinct. He could hear the engines of the other ships, the firing of lasers and the explosions. Every so often, the noise would be overpowered by the deafening fire of the planetary defense gun. Their movement was steady, though several explosions nearby indicated the dropships were taking fire.

"Nearly there. They don't stand a-" The Hauptmann's spiel was interrupted by a violent shaking of the ship, followed by the lights flashing red.

Over the radio, the pilot gave rushed orders. "Hauptmann, unsure Motoren wurden getroffen! Plasma-Schäden! Setzen Sie auf die Sprungsätze!"

One of the soldiers cried out to Tsutsumi. "Captain, what the hell's he saying!?"

He was tossed a set of what looked like air tubes, with small nozzles at the bottoms. They were coupled with a confusing set of straps and buckles. Clearly whoever designed it had no intentions of using it. "Put that on. There should be one for everyone in this ship."

Though the should be worried him, Cameron managed to get his on. "What now sir?" As he asked this the ramp began to open. Outside, there was a trail of smoke and scraps of metal tearing free of the ship.

As Tsutsumi charged forward, he called out. "Jump Soldaten! Follow me!" After a brief moment of hesitation, the squad followed out the ramp. It wasn't hard to figure out how the packs worked. They were designed more to boost one's leap or slow a fall than to fly. So the maneuvering was quite difficult. Their ship crashed into the rocks, exploding violently and knocking a few soldiers off course. Cameron and Tsutsumi landed in the shallows, safe enough. Large plasma guns in the cliff fort focused fire on the dropships in the air.

Cameron watched as, without a moment's delay, Tsutsumi tore off his pack and rushed toward the beaches. At first he found this an incredible display of dedication. Then he noticed the Skiross soldiers on the beach, taking aim. He found himself easily matching Kunio's pace as they raced for the larger rocks and the wreckage of their ship. Plasma stuck the water behind him, he could hear the hissing when the heat struck the cool tide. He unslung the rifle from his back and threw himself against a rock.

Tsutsumi stood, pistol and sword drawn, catching his breath. "Corporal, you may want to turn on your bayonet."

Cameron did so, the device quickly heating the blade. "Captain? Why not start firing instead?"

"Because any soldier worth a damn would-" A metallic sphere, marked with green and black coloration, splashed into the water at their feet. "That, would do that. MOVE!"

They dashed from their cover and rushed the beach, the grenade blasting plasma across the area. This blast only just missed them. The Skiross on the beach were few in number, which had at first seemed like an easy challenge. But as Cameron drew closer, the sheer size of them was truly disconcerting. Their jaws revealed several jagged teeth, their skin scaly and metallically colored. A few wore masks, possibly providing some tactical advantage. Either that or just intimidation. Something the massive horns on their heads did enough for.

Despite this monstrous appearance, Cameron found they were only as strong as he was. Or maybe he just got lucky, he wasn't entirely sure. Either way, his bayonet slid easily into the Skiross, and he brought it to the ground. One readied to shoot him, but was in turn blasted by Tsutsumi, who was already pulling his blade free of one. Cameron shot down the last two, and collapsed. He had thrice barely escaped death, and hadn't been on the planet for five minutes.

Tsutsumi looked out over the beach, watching as many other dropships bound for the beaches were brought down in flames. "God… I don't even see one successful landing… Come on corporal, I have some charges. We need to bring those guns down." He strode through the opened door, wiping his sword clean. Cameron rose from his knees and began to follow.

As he reached the door, he watched as Kunio took a blast of plasma straight to the gut, and fell to the floor. He screamed, his face wrenched in agony. Cameron rushed in, firing wildly down the hall at the Skiross. Those he didn't kill were forced back down the hall. He threw his rifle to the side and began trying to drag Kunio away. "Come on Captain. Come on…" There was a sickening wet sound, and suddenly Kunio felt significantly lighter. Cameron's face went white, and he went weak at the knees.

He didn't have long to be sick, as down the hall he could hear the Skiross soldiers marching. He grabbed his rifle and, not looking back, began down the hall into the facility. There and then he decided upon the most important rule in this war: Don't get hit

…

Fourteen! Despite himself, Cameron felt on top of the world. They couldn't stop him! That said, he hadn't run into many. But nevermind that, he was invincible! Despite his newfound courage he was on high alert. A few halls back he had found the floor littered with Skiross corpses. Even if there were friendlies inside, he had to make sure to call out a call sign before they mistakenly shot him.

After what felt like at least an hour skulking through the Skiross base, he found a place where they had evidently tried to hold. There were several metal crates and tables, set up to provide cover around the door. Several blast marks indicated they had fought with Sonnenreich troopers. He crept through the door, and froze when he heard a whirring beside his head. When it stopped, he turned to see a man in black armor stood, rifle pointed at his head.

The soldier stared at him. Cameron, unsure of what to do, gave the call sign assigned to his group. "Nashorn. Nicht schießen." There was another moment of uneasy silence as he stared down the barrel of the man's gun. Finally, the weapon was lowered.

"You, you're with the beach forces?" The helmet he wore distorted the voice slightly, but he was very clearly Australian. "Fucking A… Captain, we've got a grunt here!" Cameron stood up, thankfully sure he wasn't going to be shot. Another man in similar uniform approached. He noticed each bore a number in silver on their armor. The Aussie was numbered 1178, his captain 0314. "Snuck right on in."

The captain stared him down for a moment. "And? What about him 78?"

The soldier gestured to Cameron, exasperated. "What about him?! He just made it through this whole compound. And!" He backed up and peered down the hallway. He rushed back in. "By himself no less! That's what's about him!" He rounded on Cameron. "How many'd you kill to get up here?"

"Um… Fourteen."

The soldier did another exaggerated gesture toward him. " **Fourteen!** That's more than I've got!"

This seemed to get the Captain's attention. "Not bad. What's your rank sold-" It was fleeting however. He brought his fingers to his ear, answering his comms. "Yes? Alright. C16 set, we better get clear. Soldier, you're coming with us."

…

Cameron made his way from the compound in the company of the black armored soldiers. The mostly referred to each other by number, which was strange to say the least. Despite their incredible skill, he had managed to add another three to his count. The Skiross had apparently been driven back by these troopers, who weren't present on the _Fruchtlos_. When they emerged, the ground shook and massive blast tore through the earth behind them.

They continued to drag him along, mostly shooting the shit and talking about how many they had done in. Cameron was surprised that he had actually outdone many of them. He was certain these were the kind of men who had killed hundreds of xenos a piece, and the fact some were wowing over his deeds was indeed a bit entertaining.

Eventually they brought him to another landing site, several dropships organized into neat rows, tanks and mechs being transported around, and officers all over debating the success of the operation. He heard a voice call out to him. "CAM! FUCKING HELL MAN!" And found Jordyn sprinting toward him. The two collided, Cameron barely staying up. "What happened to you! The reports are that your landing force was… Well… FUCKING HELL!"

After letting go of Cameron, Jordyn took a look at the soldiers he had met. "And… What are you doin' with the Black Brunswickers?"


	6. Chapter 6: The Black Brunswickers

Chapter 6: The Black Brunswickers

The colony of New Brunswick orbited the star of Erstmarsch a mere two jumps from Sol. Having been established fairly recently, in 2249, it was very early in development. The planet had been green, untouched, and peaceful. Things would go very poorly for New Brunswick, and her people.

It was early 2251. A recent movement, headed by the beloved Lena Buchheim, demanded autonomy for the colony. The Braunschweig Freiheit Front had pressured the Sonnenreich to grant them some semblance of self-government. The first sign things would not end well was the silence. That damned silence. All communication with anything off-world ceased. It was supposed that there was something built into the equipment that the Reich could switch off should anything happen.

The next sign was ever so slightly more obvious. The Kriegsmarine arrived in full force to bombard the planet. The people hurriedly dug out a series of tunnels with their mining equipment. Eventually, the attack ceased, and the ships sat in orbit. In a week, the Braunschweig militia, the Brunswickers, dug out a series of trenches near any entrances to their tunnels. The Heer would be arriving soon, but the colony would not surrender. It wasn't about self-government, it was about basic humanity.

Sure enough, the Heer was deployed soon after the construction was completed. Machine guns and assault rifles were scarce; some were without any more than a pistol. The attack came with a horrid ferocity. Bullets ricocheted from the rocks, splintered wood, and shattered bone. Bodies soon filled the trenches. But somehow, through some miracle, the Brunswickers held out. The bodies of the invaders laid scattered across the waste and mud.

The entrance to the main tunnel system, Oase, was held with the most success. Ammunition and guns were scavenged from the fallen, though many scavengers fell to sniper fire in the distance. Eventually bombers were deployed, aiming for more accurate and strategic destruction. Many defenses were reduced to splinters and craters. Yet still, the Brunswickers prepared themselves for the second assault.

There was little question that they stood no chance. The Heer now deployed the Panzertruppe, which devastated the outer defense. Now the battle for Oase would be fought. The infantry of the Sonnenreich breached the doors, and flooded into the tunnels, funneled into militia fire. By the time the second assault was called off, several thousand had died in the attack against the colonial remnants.

Without ammunition and devoid of other options, the Brunswickers officially capitulated. They surrendered Lena Bruchheim, and prepared to be executed or detained. The Führer had a very unique plan for these rebels though. During the battle, they had displayed unquestionable skill and fierce dedication. His trusted Generalfeldmarschall demanded they be taken into army service. By any means necessary, they would fight for the Reich with the same ferocity.

Achieving this would be a painful process for these renegades. They were incarcerated in Siberia, and broken in body and mind. Many who had survived the battle of New Brunswick would now die in the infamous and repurposed Russian gulag camps. Methods of reprogramming ranged from the simple psychological manipulation, to physical and mental torture. Out of the 4360 who were taken prisoner after the rebellion, 1450 would survive.

Those who made it out of this hell were then taken to a base in China, and trained extensively. Sure enough, they showed a tactical prowess and skill to rival the Reich's best. They would be very keen to use them. When put through courses the Space Marines would use, they would outdo them in most every regard. The new elite unit was given special uniform, and given a new designation: The Black Brunswickers. Either due to the re-education or in an attempt to forget the past, the Brunswickers assigned numbers to themselves. They never shared their names with those outside the unit.

…

Soon enough, June of 2256 rolled around. The Star Empire of Ios made their presence known to the Sonnenreich, and immediately declared war. Several attacks were made, but few gained headway. Finally, the Skiross fleets broke through, and began sieging Alpha Centauri. Seeing that they would need to deploy ground forces to defend it anyway, the Reich dispatched the Black Brunswickers to their first real combat mission.

Vukmir Saponja was one of them, numbered 0836. He and his comrades now crouched, stood, or lay dead in the streets of Feuerstelle. The Skiross' lasers streaked through the air, sending some of the infantry around them to the ground. The crackling of the lasers was only rivalled by the firing of the machine guns. The Kriegsmarine assaulted the fleet, ceasing the bombardment. All that remained was to hold out against the infantry and armor.

"Thirty six! Hey, you paying attention?!" His comrade Mika, 1224, shook him by the shoulder. "The Second Japanese are calling for assistance. Take your thirty and go assist. The Panzertruppe's caught up with another unit." A laser came through the window, narrowly missing his head. He threw himself against the wall and returned fire.

Vukmir radioed his squadron, and relayed their next objective. The group quickly made way to the other end of the city. They needn't travel far it seemed. The Japanese had fallen back to the governor's mansion. The Brunswickers were ushered in quickly, and joined with their front lines. Vukmir was pulled aside by their Hauptmann.

"Waga kamiyo! Where have you been! The uchūbito have pushed my men back. I can't be expected to do this by myself." Several lasers blasted through the glass, and three more soldiers fell dead. Their spots were quickly taken by Brunswickers.

"Feuer zurückgeben! Return fire!" Muzzles flashed as the soldiers unloaded on the Skiross down the road. Guttural roars barely rose above the exchange. In the distance, Vukmir heard a low rumbling. He peeked around the edge of the window, spotting a smoothly armored and hovering vehicle.

"Sagni se!" He shoved the Hauptmann to the floor and followed him down. A mere second later, the wall they had stood behind was struck by a massive beam. It tore through the house, erasing one of Vukmir's men. Without a second thought, he rolled over and fired again down the street, halting the infantry who had begun to advance. The Japanese commander rose and dashed for new cover.

"Teki no yoroi! Find cover!" The massive craft began its slow approach, a small secondary weapon throwing fire at the houses on the sides. The Japanese marines did what they could about the infantry, but the armor would be a problem. Vukmir stopped firing and joined another Brunswicker behind another wall.

"Did we bring any anti-armor?" The man nodded, pointing to an anti-tank grenade, on the floor by a fallen soldier. "Govno…" Another blast from the main gun blasted through the stairs. The noise of the beam drowned out everything, and was near deafening. A part of the floor above collapsed, the beam having separated it from any support. Dust and smoke filled the room, a fire having broken out. It was nearly on top of them.

The Hauptmann of these men was clearly no fool. He seemed seasoned, and experienced. Even still, Vukmir found it hard to believe what the man was doing now. Seemingly having expended his ammunition, he had cast his rifle aside and unsheathed the sword at his hip. The fact that he even had a sword was somewhat surprising. But clearly it wasn't the end of his brash decisions.

"Shinzō-bu no tame ni!" He whipped around from behind the wall, pausing in his charge only to snatch the grenade. As he rushed out from the building, two very surprised Skiross soldiers greeted him. Despite their towering figure and tough hides, a quick swipe of the blade sent both reeling back. Continuously getting more bold, the man leapt forward and onto the enemy vehicle. The tank had a third weapon: A rear facing manned laser gun. He slashed at the creaturing operating it, pulled the pin, and dropped the grenade into the turret.

"Moj Bože…" Vukmir peered up in amazement at the man's skill. His soldiers applauded and cheered as though the battle had just been won. Their commander dismounted effortlessly, and began to jog back to the mansion. Their celebrations would be put to an abrupt end. Before he made it back, a quick blast of fire escaped the flamethrower before the tank was destroyed. Those in the manor watched in shock and horror as their Hauptmann was set ablaze, and then launched several feet across the air. He struck the wall and fell unceremoniously into a heap.

Many turned away, unwilling to watch. A few others were unable to, completely still. Vukmir was among the latter for a moment. After the initial shock, he rushed over to him. There wasn't a real need to confirm his death. The fire, the shrapnel from the explosion, the collision with the wall. That would put anyone down. He reached through the flames and tore away his tag. Tsutsumi Kanjiro. He also took the sword from his hand and the sheath from his hip. He gave the Hauptmann's gear to his second, and took his squad to rejoin the rest of his unit.

"A shame…" He thought. "After this, we'll probably need some more Brunswickers. Hard to find men like that."

…

The First Contact War would rage on for another year in total. In total, over 950,000,400 soldiers and crewman died alone. Ios never released their casualties. 1450 Black Brunswickers were deployed to Alpha Centauri. 637 returned. Even with the massive casualty rate, the Sonnenreich spun the war and the Brunswickers as a massive success. In the years following, both would become symbols from which Humanity drew their pride.

…

Cameron shook his head in awe. The Brunswickers had left to go and consult someone. 1178 had expressed interest in him, and had managed to convince the others to mention him to… Whoever was in charge of them. Jordyn couldn't help but laugh.

"No wonder you didn't realize who they were. That's new armor. And hell, did you see their guns? I think they've got the new models. Pricks, leaving the frontal assault with the old."

Even as things had calmed down, the thundering of artillery would occasionally shake the ground. Far above, fighters danced across the skies, the cry of their engines reaching those below. Cameron was perfectly fine sleeping through it though. It had been one hell of a landing, and he was glad it was behind him.


	7. Chapter 7: Bite and Hold

Chapter 7: Bite and Hold

17-6-2289

Neosis III, FOB

It was approaching dawn. Though the battle for the planet raged on, there was an unexpected moment of calm. The 2nd Cambridge Rifles filled the trenches surrounding the base. A division of panzers were set in dug out positions, turrets scanning the treeline. Jordyn knelt, eyes poking over the edge, trying to spot the enemy.

Skiross attacks had forced the original push back. They were now backed literally into a corner, the cliff behind them. Jordyn's morale wasn't helped by the lack of conversation. Normally he and Cameron would be chatting idly about something or other, sometimes fiddling with their equipment. It seemed he was nowhere to be found however. No one was talking about how their most elite troops had been withdrawn to somewhere else. The hope was that they were bound somewhere to draw the enemy away.

Some moments later, Jordyn spotted a gleam through the treeline. He had evidently not been the only one, as a red streak blasted across the distance. There was a violent explosion which shook the trees, alien fauna fleeing into the sky. Without a second's hesitation, a wave of plasma rounds came from the trees, striking all around the trenches. A bolt flew just above his head as he ducked down, readying his rifle. As he did so, the sirens began to sound. A lad to his right fell as he was struck.

As more men dove into the trench seeking shelter, an officer called out. "Hier kommen Sie! Position halten!" From where he crouched Jordyn could hear the engines of the Skiross vehicles. There were several sounds of cracking trees as they broke through. The tank in the dugout mere feet from him was struck by a massive plasma round. The armor was burned away, and the round melted into the chassis. Only the commander managed to crawl out as it fell apart behind him.

The rest of the tanks fired in unison, and a few more explosions sounded off a handful of hits. "Feuer öffnen!" On order the line rose and opened fire. Their hulking enemies made easy enough targets, no matter how they spaced themselves out. Roars and screeches rang out as the infantry were struck by laser fire.

Many were firing wildly, either terrified or caught up in the moment. Jordyn made sure to take careful aim at each target. It was about the precision of the shots, not number. One down. His second streaked closely by another. The third took the face off of one's helmet. Another hit. Another enemy tank explodes, disrupting his aim. Sixth hits a knee and the seventh put him down. With eight shots, he took five out. Not his best round to say the least. Hunkering down to avoid return fire, he pulled back the bolt. The steam built up discharged quickly, and he returned to firing.

Before he could rack up any more, however, a massive blue beam struck the forest. It swept along the tree line and obliterated anything hiding there. The force of the hit seemed to shake the world, and a storm of dirt was blown in all directions. Everyone remained in cover, not wanting to be the first to risk taking fire.

Instead it was the commander from another tank that confirmed the enemy gone. The hatch was thrown open, and he cried out. "That's our firepower up there boys! Make sure you thank 'em proper! Now get moving!" The Unteroffiziere echoed his call to advance. With some hesitation, the rifles clambered out of the trench and rushed into the cloud.

…

The gunship rattled again as it wove through enemy fire. They had been flying for almost an hour. Cameron hadn't been given much time to adjust, but he hadn't expected much. The new armor fit well enough. The helmet had been a bit difficult to work with, but once it was on it was surprisingly comfortable. Their need for quick movement didn't give him much time to admire his new badge of honor: The silver 0777 on his breastplate.

"Already got you suited up and on your first mission, eh?" The Aussie from the fort clapped a hand on his shoulder. "I'd like to see that efficiency with the rest of the army. Welcome to the Brunswickers ma-" The ship shook again with much more energy. Cameron could feel the change in direction as they began to descend.

The man in charge was 0314, or Callum. He was an American from Montana. He had served with a sniper group before being inducted into the Brunswickers. The Aussie had originally been in the engineer corps. He was still only jokingly referred to as "Fixer", considering he had a habit of breaking things. He hadn't really gotten to know anyone else. They kept quiet and to themselves.

The doors opened and the lights began flashing. Callum was the first to leap out. "Everyone on me. We can't give these bastards a moment to organize. Get those doors opened." Together they had a group of twenty, the rest of the ships carrying on. The hill-fort they were assaulting was the central artillery position of the island they had landed on. It had been shelling any advances and secondary dropzones. Priority one was disabling the guns. If they couldn't be turned against the enemy, then they were to be destroyed.

"Form up along the wall. Fixer, are you in?" Fixer tapped away at the screen on the wall. He sighed and Cameron swore he could **feel** his comrade's eyes rolling.

"Can you give it a minute boss? You know how complicated all their damn computers are. Ah, here we go." The door began to slide open, and Fixer rushed back behind the wall.

Callum motioned to hold. "Stay quiet. I need to hear them." Cameron turned to look at Fixer, before remembering the helmet concealed his look of confusion. He instead tried to listen for what Callum wanted to hear. He was shocked to hear talking, in English no less.

"Who opened doors? Get behind crate, aim there. Wait for order to fire." The speech was basic to say the least. It was definitely not someone used to speaking English. Callum nodded, and the squad readied their weapons. Cameron lifted his as well, struggling somewhat. He was still unused to the new weapon. It had a strange cylindrical pack as an attachment; a spare was on his back. He hadn't asked what it was or why he had it, but he was sure they were important to the weapon.

"Alright, ready… Clean house boys." Fixer tossed a grenade into the room, and the rest readied to charge. The voice came again. "Explosive! All down!" It went off and the squad rounded the corner, opening up on a squad of Skiross in heavy armor. Two things were very noticeably different about these models. Firstly, they were automatic. Lasers streaked from the weapons as the trigger was held down. Secondly was the lasers themselves. The blue beams tore through the enemy quickly.

Cameron couldn't help but have some fun firing the new weapon. "Bloody hell that was excellent! These things are perfect!" He turned it around in his hands a few times before he was able to ask Callum his question. "Oh, uh. Sir? Why were those creatures speaking English?"

Callum sighed. "Fuck's sake Sev did no one explain **any** of our equipment to you? They weren't. The helmet translates the best it can. Which is why it's all janky. Also why our German members hear German, our Russians hear Russian, so on and so forth. Now come on, we need to move. They know we're here now."

Cameron slouched somewhat. "Y-yes sir. Understood." Fixer nodded to him, and the group began to work through the complex.

…

Lasers and plasma streaked over the ditch carved out by the ship cannon. The rifles had succeeded in taking it, but now a renewed Skiross offensive had them trapped. It didn't help that there was a constant barrage of artillery. Shells came closer and closer every volley toward the place where Jordyn and his squad huddled. He tossed another grenade over the lip toward the enemy lines.

He was nudged by his squad mate, who pointed to a Sergeant waving him over. "Rifleman, get over here! Help this man!" Jordyn rushed to his side, and looked down at the soldier on the ground. He clutched at his side, which had been eaten away at by plasma. "Take him to the medics! They're just over the other side, back toward the FOB!"

"All due respect sir, won't they be firing in that direction?!" Clearly the man didn't care, as he shoved Jordyn out of his way and began barking orders to the other soldiers. Jordyn glanced the man over. Clearly it had only been a grazing hit, since anything else would make medical attention fruitless. But he was still losing blood fast. He was deathly pale, but incredibly silent. Jordyn hoisted him up with a good deal of effort, and began struggling up the incline.

As he did so, a tank rolled up to the edge, secondaries opening up on the enemy. The main cannon fired, the heat from it causing him to take a moment to pause. The turret swiveled, firing elsewhere. One step at a time, he began to make some progress. As he was almost to the edge, however, the tank was hit. The bolt struck the turret ring, and tore the turret from the body. There was a brief scream from the crew before the vehicle exploded.

Jordyn and his charge were sent rolling back into the rift. They came to a halt only a few feet from the bottom. Jordyn slowly pushed himself back up. The wounded soldier was coughing and shaking. "I know, I know! Don't worry, I'm gonna get you up… There."

Jordyn stopped as he rolled the man over. Blood poured from new wounds, and from his mouth. Shards of the tank's focusing crystal punctured his armor, some holes indicating a few more that had gone through. As Jordyn tried to stand, he felt a sharp pain in his leg. A much smaller shard had struck him as well. He gave himself a once over, making sure that was the only wound. To his relief it was.

"Rifleman, what did I…" The Sergeant looked over the man, at toward the burning wreck above. "Damn it… Nevermind, get back up to the edge and return fire. We need all the guns we can get. Move!" Jordyn began rushing back to the far edge, trying to ignore the shard digging into his leg.

…

"Three. Two. One." The building rattled at the force of the explosion. "Clear the room, go, go!" The squad funneled in, weapons raised and ready for combat. They were reasonably surprised to find an empty command deck. "Search the place. If they've rigged any explosives disable them. We want these guns for our guys preferably."

Fixer led ten men further in. Meanwhile Callum rushed over to the terminals. Cameron followed him, once more marveling at the helmet's ability. Though he was sure some of it was off, all the symbols and unfamiliar digits were transformed for him. It wasn't long before he found what looked to be a targeting computer.

"Boss, think this is what we're looking for. Would you like the honors?"

Callum shook his head. "Nah, I've found some logs from the commander of this place. Besides, you're in the Brunswickers now. Essentially: Command can't fuck with your accomplishments. You found it, you turn this thing around."

Cameron was a bit surprised. "Um… Alright. Then…" He scanned over the computer. It was a detailed map of the surrounding area. It looked like a height map, rather than a satellite view. Not surprising, since any satellites had probably been hit by the Kriegsmarine already. Despite the confusing wording of the labels, he managed to find the settings for aim. There were some markings on the map labelled "Center Base" and "Forward", presumably their command center and an outpost on the front. He promptly punched in the coordinates for the command.

To his surprise, it wasn't just the guns that rotated. The very structure began to swivel, eventually placing the viewports in a position to overlook the other half of the island. Callum shook his head and looked back. "So how long do you think it took to build this, huh? 'Cause I think it'd be a long time. They must've been here for years." The two watched as a few fighters shot past, pursuing a Skiross craft. "You locked on a position yet Sev?"

"Oh, right. I've got a place." He scanned the controls again. "But I… Don't see a button to fire."

"Remember, sometimes the translator gets stuff wrong. Might be a button you can see, but it doesn't sound right. Like a button labelled scorch, or blaze, or-"

As Callum was explaining, Cameron promptly pressed the button labelled "burn". The many cannons fired a volley off from left to right. The massive rounds shot across the sky, one plowing through a mountain that was in front of the fort. Cameron watched the map, ignoring the rocks and dirt tumbling down the mountainside. The red dot for the Center Base began to blink suddenly, and a panel across the room came to life. A constant stream of "Stop Burn" scrolled from left to right on its screen.

Callum chuckled. "Or burn. That too. Something tells me we might've pissed 'em off."

There was a far off sound of a siren blaring. Fixer returned from the other room. "Enemies cleared out, explosives disabled, badass execution performed. We're all set to go boss. Whenever you two're ready."


	8. Chapter 8: Fallen Star

Chapter 8: Fallen Star

21-6-2289, 12:34

Skies of Neosis III

The slim Skiross vessel had drifted too far from its convoy. Though the captain was a sensible sort, sometimes his courage overtook him. Now was perhaps the worst possible time for this to happen. The Kriegsmarine wasted no time in opening up. Blinding blue lasers streaked across the void, piercing the waning shields of the vessel. The captain stood on the bridge, having determined to go down with his vessel, gazing across the gap toward the bridge of the the _Tapfer der Erde_.

Though he didn't know it, the Kommodore did the same from his bridge. He watched with satisfaction as the Skiross ship began careening toward the planet. The bridge was filled with satisfied cheers and clapping. "Kapitänleutnant, call it in. Another one für das Vaterland!"

The Lieutenant did as he was ordered. He hastily typed up the code to the ground forces. "Herr Major, das ist die _Tapfer der Erde_. Skiross Schiff nach unten. One more going down."

14:43

Crashed Skiross Destroyer

Over the course of the battle, several Skiross ships had been sent to the surface of the planet. But most had been corvettes. Ios had not been willing to risk their higher end vessels. As the naval losses kept growing, however, they were left with little option. Now the Sonnenreich had taken down the first of many destroyers in the system. These ships were more durable and rather sizably larger. But it was still shocking to imagine a crew to survive a crash like that.

Surprise or no exactly that had happened. Not an hour after its fall, a distress beacon had been activated. One that both sides had detected. Seeing the Skiross in a rush for the ship, command was lead to believe something of value was aboard. So both set out on a mad rush to be the first ones there. The British Interplanetaries were on the scene first, their landing zone having been the closest. The Panzertruppe had managed to work a division up to them, so at the least they'd have armor support.

Jordyn and the rest of the Cambridge Rifles swept through the second lowest deck. Alien symbols and writings beyond his knowledge likely marked where one was. There were still some Skiross littered throughout the rooms and halls, but they were not the primary concern. Besides, even though they had survived, those resisting were vastly outnumbered by the dead or injured. They began to set up broken tech and crates on the gaping tear in the hull, in preparation for an enemy assault. The ship had broken apart even more upon entry. The front portion, bridge included, had landed further away. The central piece and rear of the ship were now swarming with Sonnenreich infantry.

Sure enough, the Skiross came. A sniper from his squad, Powell, got the first shot off. He had spotted a handful of the creatures skulking in the woods. It did them little good, all the greenery having been burnt away by the fires of the crash site.

After that, all hell broke loose. Plasma rounds from the Skiross tanks slammed into the sides of the ship, beginning the now all too familiar hiss. The space between the two forces was filled with green and red, plasma and lasers striking all over. Jordyn had never been less accurate in his life. Clearly aiming was more difficult with a wall of enemy fire headed your way.

As his squad jeered and cursed at the reptiles, Powell took a hit square in the helmet. They all fell silent, save for Powell and the medic who rushed up to try and help him. The both of them desperately scrambled to take off the helmet, but it seemed too late. As they did, Powell began screaming, his arms flailing spastically. He ended up striking the medic, who had pulled back after nearly burning his own finger off. The smell of the burning material quickly was overpowered by that of roasting flesh. It was severely off-putting, to say the least. Jordyn struggled to continue firing as the private beside him turned pale and refused to raise his head.

As Jordyn sent a few more lasers down at the enemy, the Luftwaffe decided to pay a visit. A fighter swept low over the field, lasers pouring from its nose. The pilot was skilled. He only needed one pass to mop up the tanks that had been assailing them. Free at last from the big guns, more infantry felt safe to peak out and return fire.

Despite the slight boost of confidence, it did little to change things tactically. Though it was clear they would win, it was all too apparent the losses they were taking. Any victory scored here would be pyrrhic. As another group of panzers rolled forth, the Skiross seemingly decided their situation was beyond saving. The last handfuls of soldiers made a dash for the hill they had charged over.

As the medics dragged Powell and a few other fallen away, not for care but rather to clear a path to the door, a voice rang out. "Außerirdische, fliehe von hier. Dein Angriff ist gescheitert. Wir nehmen keine Gefangenen."

A particularly tired and disgruntled soldier in front of him groaned. "Bloody hell, what's he sayin'?"

Jordyn couldn't help but stare at him in disbelief. "What, you can't speak German? How the hell don't you speak the mother-tongue?"

The man laughed, looking back with a squint. "Not my mother's tongue. N' besides, I never went to school. Only basics for the army. Just tell me what he's sayin'."

Jordyn shook his head. Still, it would be wrong if the poor man was going to go about without understanding a word from the officers or announcements. He sighed. "They're telling the aliens to flee. That their attack failed. Also, they say we won't be taking prisoners."

"Is that right? Good. Gotta pay 'em back for Powell, don't we?" The man gave him a sort of wicked grin, and began following the squad lead down the stairs. Jordyn threw a glance at Powell, shuddered, and hurried to go with him.

…

Explosions shook the ground, and plasma bolts struck both soldiers and the surroundings. The cry from the charging infantry still rang out over it all. The voices of the Heer still, for now, the loudest instrument in the orchestra of the battlefield. Lending their sound to this song were the sirens of the nearby Skiross outpost.

Overlooking it all was Oberst Dieter Herdrich. He was playing conductor to the raging fire below. It was his first command, and he was determined to prove his ability to the General der Infanterie. The vessel had been secured, and in his determination to secure a definitive victory over the Außerirdisch slime, he had charged the nearby base. This hillfort of sorts was the only thing securing the local pocket of Skiross. Once it was his, Herdrich was sure it would fall.

"Shulte!" He shouted down to the radioman.

"Jawhol, mein Oberst?"

"Give the order for the Luftwaffe to strafe the base. I want a breach now!"

"Jawhol, herr Herdrich!" Hurriedly, he began signalling the bombers. "Bericht, Bericht! Herr Herdrich braucht sofort Bomber! Send them at once!"

…

If the trading of laser and plasma was not enough for a man, the sudden falling of bombs only added to the chaos. All around there were men dead or dying, still more desperately seeking cover. Jordyn was, rather thankfully, still among the latter. As was Kayden, the man from before. The two together ducked into a slight divot in the ground. They huddled close, keeping their heads down and knees tucked in as the bombers made their pass.

For nearly twelve minutes they waited, cowering, as the explosions rang off. Afterward, they hesitantly peered over the dirt. The base was barely standing, whole sections of the wall having been reduced to nothing, or blown into pieces that had gone soaring. Not a single bolt was being fired.

A whistle sounded, but the infantry were slow to rise. They were perhaps even slower to actually close the distance and investigate the enemy fortifications. Thankfully, any resistance had been put down. Bodies were strewn everywhere, most missing some limbs, many with gaping holes. The dark alien blood was spilt and pooled everywhere. Somehow, by some cruel trick of fate, a handful had actually survived. Now they threw up their arms, clearly weak and unable to continue this harrowing fight.

"Gegen die Wand! Bewegung!"

Kayden turned questionably to Jordyn. "He's ordering them to go up to the wall."

The Skiross, clearly broken and not willing to risk anything more, complied. One or two now looked visibly frightened.

"Infanterie! Forme eine Linie!" The captain made a waving motion a few feet from the wall.

Kayden nodded. "I know what that means." He rushed to join the line of soldiers. Jordyn hesitated. The sharp gaze of the Hauptmann seemed to will him to obey. Slowly, his feet marched him up to Kayden's side.

"No quarter for these bastards! Serves 'em right!" Several others joined in the yelling.

"Bereit!" The sound of thermal discharge, as the line readied their rifles. "Ziel!" The line's weapons rose in a swift motion. Jordyn's slowly joins them. "Feuer!" A single Skiross throws up his arms and squeals, as if pleading for the Hauptmann to stop. Unperturbed, the line fires a single volley, Jordyn's rifle not firing.

Jordyn stood, silent, as the few survivors slumped lifeless to the floor. The Hauptman strode up to him. "Soldat! Why did you not fire?!"

Immediately Jordyn saluted. "Herr Haptmann! They were unarmed! I thought perhaps the order from before was retracted, sir!"

The captain peered into his eyes, then sighed. "Soldat. These are not our people. Were these Außerirdisch Human, we would of course treat them as deserving. But they are not. They are a Krankheit, a sickness. The galaxy would be better off without them. I expect you to remember this, Verstanden?"

Without hesitation, Jordyn responded. "Jawhol, mein Hauptmann!"

"Sehr gut. Hagel Sol."

The line sounded off. "Hagel Sol!"


	9. Chapter 9: Gatecrashers

Chapter 9: Gatecrashers

24-6-2289, 13:17

Edge of the Neosis System

Much like the Marinetruppen, the Black Brunswickers were called upon for combat both planet-side and in space. They acted as a boarding party, clearing decks of important ships or structures. Today they were called upon for the latter.

The Star Empire's fleets had been harassing nearby systems. The Kriegsmarine admiralty had been trying to find out how they had been moving so quickly. Finally, they had found their answer. A stray laser had shot past Neosis VII, and struck a cloaked structure. Once the Flotte had a visual, it was quickly noted to be a Skiross wormhole generator. The nearest vessels were immediately ordered into battle.

At the same time, the Brunswickers were withdrawn temporarily from the fighting on Neosis III. The admiralty wanted the structure captured, not destroyed. Little study had been done on the Skiross' interstellar travel, and the Sonnenreich believed there could be much gain from the wormhole tech. But that meant the base had to be boarded.

As the Flotte drew close, the generator flickered. A great tear opened, the light of a foreign star pouring through. With it came five ships; four corvettes and a destroyer. Evidently, word hadn't yet reached them of the enemy vessels. They at first made no move, seemingly waiting for the Flotte to move out of their way. As it began to dawn on them, lasers streaked forward.

…

As the first laser fired, Cameron's pod launched from the ship. Each could sit five soldiers. Along with him were Fixer, Callum, a grenadier referred to as Scorch, and an Italian numbered 0490. He had been quiet except for their introduction. Fixer was more than happy to make up for his silence.

"Honestly Sev? You've never even boarded once?"

Cameron shook his head. "No. Only got off Earth recently. Didn't expect to ever board, either. Was a part of the British Interplanetary Infantry."

As a red light began to flash, Callum banged his fist against the roof of the pod. "Alright, quiet down now. We all know the drill, yeah? Find the control room, shut the thing down, shoot the bad guys. Easy as that. Sev, stick close. Don't want the rookie to end up dead on his second run."

The pod stopped suddenly, shaking horribly. The light continued flashing briefly. When it turned green, the bars keeping them in place rose. The weapons case at the end of the pod opened, and they all grabbed their gear. They stood, weapons raised at the door.

Callum reached slowly for the release lever. "Steady. Three… Two… One…" The door swung down, and they charged out as Callum called, "Move, move! Clear the area!"

They scanned the area quickly, but it had been abandoned. Blast doors on either end of their stretch of hall stood shut. It was likely the Skiross had closed them when the pod breached the hull, thinking there would be an air leak. This was the reason for there being a grenadier in each squad. Scorch rushed up to the door.

As he set the charge, he nodded to himself. Before arming it, he took a quick step back. Having sufficiently admired his work, he set the charge and timer. "I'd step back sir. Need a good sized explosion to get through."

The five stepped back into the pod, Callum at the end. Half a minute passed, and there was a blast that seemed to shake the station. He peeked out, then nodded to Scorch. The line filed out of their pod and down the hall. A hole had been blasted in the door, the metal bent and twisted inward.

There they found a very similar situation. The opposite end of the hall was blocked by a shut blast door, and a pod had crashed through the wall. The difference being that, on the wall squarely in front of this other pod, there was a third door. The other grenadier sat with a plasma torch, trying to force open this door.

As Callum walked up, the man in charge of the squad waved him over. "Hey, three-fourteen! We could use the extra guns. We figure this leads further in, so it's probably guarded."

The man working on the door called back. "Almost through now. I'd get somewhere safe."

Callum nodded. "Alright, stack up. Get clear of the door. Fixer, as soon as the door is open, toss a frag through."

FIxer nodded. "Aye sir. Will do."

The hiss of the torch stopped. "Alright, that should do it."

Sure enough, the door opened immediately, and a bolt of plasma struck the engineer square in the chest. He rolled back screaming. As he did, Callum and the other squad lead opened up with their own fire, blue lasers filling the rather dark hall with light. "FIXER!"

"Frag out!" He leaned just out beyond Callum, and hurled the grenade down the hall.

As he drew back, 0490 took his place to put more suppressing fire on the Skiross. "Prendi quello, bastardi!"

Even as the grenade went off, and the Skiross screeched in pain or death, another bolt hit its mark and began burning into the Italian's shoulder. He dropped his rifle and fell back. "FUCK! AAAAGH!" He made the unfortunate mistake of grabbing at the wound with his hand, now being burned as well. "Buon Dio! AAAAAAAGH!"

Cameron was unable to do anything but watch as the man collapsed, eventually rendered unconscious by the pain. "Jesus… Callum, can we do anything?"

He had already begun peering down the next hall. "No time Sev. We have to find the control station. His equipment's beacon will have already called a medic anyway. Now come on."

And so the two squads, each down a man, made their way deeper into the structure. The walls were all a dark, non reflective metal. Dim yellow lights did little to aid vision. It was also remarkably warm. Chances were the air was also very humid. Thankfully the helmet's apparatus helped with that.

The halls were considerably wider as well, come to think of it. He had never thought about how other races would design their vessels or stations. But it made sense now, he realised, that finding very homely designs would probably be unlikely. He couldn't help but admire the intricate markings etched into the wall. As they failed to translate into anything, it seemed they were purely decorative.

His mind was brought back to the matter at hand when Fixer caught his arm, stopping him from tripping over a dead Skiross. The beast's horn had been torn off by the fragmentation. Blood pooled on the floor at his head. Cameron shook himself awake, and carefully stepped over the fallen alien.

…

Soon enough they arrived at a massive landing, stairs on the left leading up and on the right leading down. Alarms were sounding now, and they had met with a few more enemy squads along the way. As they rounded the corner and began up the stairs, a call of "Human soldier! Shoot!" came from behind them.

Just as Cameron spun back to open fire, a bolt flew narrowly past his head. Knowing another would be on the way, he opened fire. "Go, go, get upstairs! Scorch, help me keep the buggers back!"

As the rest of the squad took off running, Scorch and Cameron continued much slower, backwards. The plasma fire was now inaccurate and sloppy, the Skiross being pinned down by a constant stream of lasers. As the neared the top, Cameron could hear a ghastly screaming. It was human, that was sure. Then there was a blast of laser, and something fell with a thud to the floor. Perhaps what made it more unbearable for Cameron was that he couldn't see what was happening.

What he heard next definitely didn't help matters. "Holy fuck… Alright, alright, it's off… Fuck… It's off Callum. Christ."

Scorch and Cameron peeled back into another side hall, where the rest of the squad had ducked into. He nearly fell down the flight right into the Skiross' waiting arms when he almost tripped again. This time over an arm, severed just below the shoulder and clad in black armor. The door slid shut, and Cameron turned to see that everyone had at the very least made it.

Callum, however, sat on a crate, kicking and reeling in pain, and left arm very much missing. His breathing was rapid, but he said nothing aside from the odd curse. Cameron stood back, feeling a bit ill himself. "Oh my… How did? What…"

Fixer stood by the next exit, shaking his head. "Plasma bolt caught him in the arm. I thouhgt we might as well hurry it, and get him inside. Plasma would've just done it slower." He looked away from Callum, though he had said nothing. "Wound's cauterized, so he won't be bleedin' out on us. Look, we need to get to the controls."

0071, the other squad's commander, nodded. "Agreed. Scorch, Sev, Fixer, Rat, you four come with me. You two…" He nodded to the other two members of his squad. "Stick with Callum. We'll come retrieve you."

In a hurry now to end this before they lost many more, the five of them rushed through the halls. The areas they ran through now were littered with Skiross corpses, and the walls and floor were dotted with blast marks. Eventually, they found where all the Brunswickers who had won this fight had gone.

They turned around the corner, finding a large corridor filled with Black Brunswickers. Large silvery crates and half-walls kept them in cover, and a door down the hall stood blasted open. Occasional bolts of plasma shot out from this opening.

The five of them split up, mingling with the group already here. Cameron huddled close with someone behind one of the frontmost walls. "The hell's happened here?"

He motioned to the door with his head. "The inoplanetyane are hiding like krysy. That's their komnata upravleniya, control room!" His english was laced with Russian, and his accent was thick. Strangely, Cameron found the helmet didn't actually translate his fellow soldier's Russian. It probably hadn't been set to translate human languages.

Suddenly, the dim yellow lights began flashing a deep red. Over the station's speakers, and in broken translation, a voice began calling. "Soldier of Star Empire! Abandon ship! Go to pods now! Again, abandon ship!"

As the message ended, a call came from the control room. "Stop burn! Stop burn, please! We are putting away gun. We must leave station!"

The Brunswickers rose, slowly, weapons trained on the Skiross as the exited the room. Following after the soldiers came several in very little to no armor. "These are doctors! Just want to abandon ship. We will be prisoners, but must we must go!"

Cameron turned to 0071, who nodded, switching on his comm-link to command. "Kommandatur, komm herein. Außerirdische haben sich ergeben. Wie sollen wir vorgehen?"

He waited a bit for their response, eyeing the Skiross the whole time. Whether they understood German or not was unclear. Cameron nervously awaited their orders, unsure if the higher-ups would be too forgiving. 0071 eventually nodded. "Jawohl, eine Minute. Who's in charge here, eh? Wer ist verantwortlich?"

One of the scientists stepped forward. "I am, Human. What do you need me?"

"Warum hast du dich ergeben? Sie hatten uns zurückgehalten."

The alien nodded. "We did have beat you, yes. But now it does not matter. We surrender because station will explode. Must escape now."

0071 stood in silence a few seconds, and then radioed back to command. "Kommandatur? Ja. Der Bahnhof wird explodieren. Ja… Sollten wir Gefangene nehmen? ... Jawohl, verstanden."

He raised his weapon again, pointed at the scientist. "No prisoners. Hagel Sol!"

Despite a twinge of guilt, Cameron raised his rifle, echoing the cry. "Hagel Sol!" His second of hesitation passing, he joined his comrades in gunning down the lot of them.

…

Unfortunately, the mission had not gone very well. The Flotte involved in the battle had lost a good many ships, and of course the wormhole generator itself had been destroyed. The admiralty had been livid, but after a few hours had altered their stance. Already, the number of Skiross ships in more central systems had fallen dramatically. Even if they had not secured the technology for themselves, the Brunswickers and Kriegsmarine had dealt a nasty blow to Ios' logistics.

The only downside would be that the fighting on Neosis III would only intensify, with Ios knowing they couldn't continue until the planet was secure.

Aboard the _Verteidiger_ , in the med-bay, Callum was being prepped for surgery. Only the best was spent on the Brunswickers, and command wasn't ready to let one of their best be lost due to a non-fatal injury. Due to this, Cameron found out a simultaneously well-intended and yet rather foreboding saying: "Only the dead leave the Brunswickers."


	10. Chapter 10: Fervor

Chapter 10: Fervor

1-7-2289, 09:04

Bunker Beneath Hill 351, Neosis III

Name: Jordyn Barrett

Password: **********

11 New Messages

1: 15-6-2289

From: Barrett, Rose

Subject: War

Hey. Sorry I haven't sent any mail yet. I was still being a bitch, I guess. Remember how I said you had it lucky? How you'd get to lounge around at the colonies? Yeah… Sorry… I knew you'd probably end up in some sort of combat, sure. You're a trigger-happy maniac. But I never thought there'd be a war. Not with Ios. I know what Dad told you about the Skiross. You both are so hopeful, so good. But I don't care. Kill any horned bastard that comes near you. You come home. No matter what.

2: 16-6-2289

From: Barrett, Harvey

Subject: So Proud

Hey kid. I know I can't say this enough, but I'm so proud of you. I know full well you can carry your own. I've told Rose plenty of times that you'll be home soon. She seems off. If you two were fighting before you left, she definitely feels bad. I'm only telling you because I'm sure she won't. I know you probably remember what I told you. I still stand by it. But any alien with a gun, I need you to realize is a threat. Don't hesitate to shoot. I got lucky. I just worry you won't.

Back home, you and your friends are being celebrated like heroes. The first British unit to leave Earth and you're leading the assault on the enemy. It certainly does something for everyone's patriotism. Their saying the government hasn't made any official statement yet, but everyone here's sure you'll all be getting medals. As you should.

Just remember, I'm so proud of you. I'm sure your mother would be too.

3: 20-6-2289

From: Kennedy, Faith

Subject: Cam

You probably weren't expecting this. I don't even know if you remember me. Cameron and I were dating, before he went and joined the army. The last thing I told him was that he was a selfish prick who the world would be better off without.

So, obviously, things didn't end well there. I've sent a few messages to him, but he won't answer. I'm just trying to ask him some things. Last week some creep from the army showed up at my house. Was asking me all sorts of questions. Some about Cameron, some about me. What's that about?

I just need you to tell Cameron to please respond to me.

4: 21-6-2289

From: Barrett, Harvey

Subject: Terrorists

I know you have enough to worry about already. I just wanted to try and take something extra off your mind. I'm sure you heard about the train bombing going on. It's all over the extranet. So you probably know the last attack was in Bristol. I just wanted to tell you Rose and I are both okay. They've got the Militärpolizei all over, looking for the bomber. We're not sure who it is yet. I'm sure you know who the public's already rushed to blame. Just in case, we've brought Faith over. I think you remember her. Cameron's girl? She's plenty thankful to stay. I told you we'd find a use for your old room.

5: 22-6-2289

From: Kennedy, Faith

Subject: Please Tell Him

I'm sure you're busy on the front still. Your family's worried about you. I'll admit, I'm starting to get worried for you and Cam. Just, please, remember to tell Cameron to message me back. Things are getting crazy here.

6: 22-6-2289

From: Barrett, Rose

Subject: Door to Door

The Militärpolizei are going door to door now. They're still just questioning people, it seems. No doubt they'll find the terrorists. They say it the Juden. Typical. Faith left. Don't know where to.

Dad says you do, though. No idea what he means. As always, good luck. Keep yourself safe. Remember, they started this war and the last. They're heartless.

7: 23-6-2289

From: Barrett, Harvey

Subject: Rose

Like I suspected, the government is saying the Juden are to blame. Me, I'd say it's just more people acting out against the war. Faith left a few days ago. Rose and I are still worried about you. Remember what I told you. Your sister just walked past, told me to tell you again to stay safe. Love you, Jordyn.

8: 25-6-2289

From: Newman, Jamie

Subject: New Home

Hey Jordyn. Finally finished with the move. Your family was really helpful. Even set me up with a new computer. If you're wondering, things haven't calmed down. Still no violence, but plenty of protestors. Honestly, I wish I were up there with them. Turns out Dublin isn't much safer than Bristol. But there's plenty of friendly people here, and they've been very accommodating. Oh, and tell Cameron to message me. I really need to hear from him right now.

9: 28-6-2289

From: Newman, Jamie

Subject: Cameron

Seriously, Jordyn. I need to talk with Cam. Or for you to message me back. I wish I could be straight with you. But it's hard to focus, honestly. It isn't just the MPs anymore. All these crazies going door to door looking for the terrorists. It's such a headache. And they come at all times, so I haven't been sleeping well.

Just tell Cameron to message me. I'm not sure if you're aware yet, but we go back quite a way. Even if he is a selfish prick.

10: 30-6-2289

From: Newman, Jamie

Subject: Mobs

Seriously, what is with these people? I get that the bombings are scary, but all it takes is one word and their up in arms. I'd say I wasn't scared, but according to my friends they're smashing people's shops up. They wouldn't say if anyone's been hurt yet, so clearly people have been. I know you two are probably going through hell right now. Please, if either of you could at least acknowledge me, it would do a lot. My apartment's got plenty of people to talk to, but it would be nice to hear an outside opinion.

11: 30-6-2289

From: Newman, Jamie

Subject: please!

Jordyn, please! It's me, it's faith! Neither you or cam ha ve gotten back to me, and this probably won't be different. It won't matter anyway. They're here! So many. There aren't even any mps anymore! It's just a mob. God, I think they want to kill us.

Please, just tell Cameron that I still loved him. I never wanted him to leave. I never wanted to leave him. I just need this to get to him. That;s all I want now. Please.

Leutnant Matthieu Barbier stared intently up at the MP, having read aloud the cache of mail in Oberschütze Barrett's account. Thankfully, the soldier hadn't checked his mail in quite a while, and the investigation had found the messages before their deletion, or worse their being read.

Hauptmann D'Aboville stood at the side of the MP. "Oui, Barbier, quite a find pour être sûr."

Though pleased his work was appreciated, Barbier turned nervously to his captain. "Monsieur, Jordyn Barrett seems a fully capable soldier. He's proven his ability and will to defend and project the will of la patrie, non? Surely we do not need to arrest him. La pauvre âme, he and his company have been through so much already."

D'Aboville nodded. "Bien sûr que non. He will stay and fight. I do not doubt the Oberschütze's loyalty. As for his family? I'll say I'm certainly more curious."

Barbier breathed a sigh of relief. He couldn't do it always, but helping his fellow soldiers was always important for him. Before the Hauptmann moved on, he caught his arm. "Désolé monsieur. But, what should I do with all these?"

"The Reich already has these messages archived. If we need them later, we'll have them. So, we'll delete them, naturellement."

"Oui, monsieur. Hagel Sol."

Name: Jordyn Barrett

Password: **********

No New Messages


End file.
